rebelracewriter Posted May 24, 2008 Report Share Posted May 24, 2008 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Media Contact: Mike Perry, Media Relations Director IHRA – Live Nation Motorsports (419) 660-4213 mperry@ihra.com Dan Wilkerson Claims Provisional #1 Qualifier Spot at First Career National Event Son of current NHRA points leader Tim Wilkerson scores impressive debut at IHRA Motor City Nationals MILAN, Mich. (March 23, 2008) – Dan Wilkerson has big shoes to fill. The son of current NHRA Nitro Funny Car points leader Tim Wilkerson took a huge step towards filling those shoes at the IHRA Motor City Nationals at Milan Dragway. Wilkerson, from Springfield, Ill., made the best of his first-ever Nitro Funny Car competitive pass by carding a 4.831 at 316.01 mph to move to the head of the Torco Racing Fuels Pro Nitro qualifying list Friday night. Though Dan Wilkerson has made a name for himself in the Alcohol Funny Car ranks, winning the NHRA Division 3 title last season, he has always wanted to move into the nitro ranks. Though he earned his license last season,the Motor City Nationals were the first chance he had to show what he could do behind the wheel of the ’07 Impala his father has put in the Winner’s Circle on the NHRA tour twice this season. “We didn’t really think we were going to go that fast,” Dan Wilkerson said. “We were trying to go low 90’s or high 80’s, but the car definitely got my attention at about 100 feet because it was really hauling the mail. It moved around a little bit, a little more that I would have hoped for, but I kept it in the groove for the most part. So overall it was a good run.” Tim Wilkerson was pleased with how his son handled himself. “As soon as the weather got better we knew it was going to be a little quicker than we expected,” he said. “When I thought we would be running we thought the track would be in the 90’s, but when the track temperature went down into the 70’s we changed it a little bit and picked up three or four hundredths. But if we would have had it tuned up like I thought it should have been tuned up it would have went in the 70’s. But that’s okay, we don’t have to go that fast anyway. We’re trying to teach him how to drive. He tends to over-steer it because it’s going so fast, but he’s doing very well.” Scott Palmer (Marionville, MO) claimed the provisional #1 qualifier spot in the Torco Racing Fuels Top Fuel class with a 4.597 pass at 317.49 mph. Palmer was the #1 qualifier at the IHRA Spring Nationals in Rockingham one month ago and will have to survive two Saturday qualifying sessions if he hopes to end up #1 on the final qualifying sheet. “We have no Crew Chief,” Palmer said with a chuckle. “When Lance Larsen and Johnny West are around they give us some advice, but Rob Flynn, Lee Beard and David Powers Motorsports…they gave us that tune-up. And Rob Flynn is a god.” Kenny Lang (Grande Pointe, Mb.) put together a breath-taking pass during the Friday evening Pro Modified qualifying session, setting the track ET record and claiming the provisional pole with a 5.964 pass at 239.36 mph. Lang carried the front tires of his ’53 Corvette almost to the 330’ timing block before setting them down and cruising straight down the groove to the finish line. Lang, who won last month in Rockingham, had the quickest afternoon qualifying session as well and, with his evening shot, claimed the five Last Man Standing bonus points. “It was a good run that felt a touch fast at the start,” Lang said. “It was a strong car and a smooth run, it felt really good.” Paul Noakes (London, Ont.) did something not many Alcohol Funny Car drivers have been able to do this season…finish better than Laurie Cannister. Cannister had been the quickest AFC in all 12 Alcohol Funny Car sessions this season heading into the Motor City Nationals, and claimed both national event titles to boot, but Noakes drove the Amalie Oil InstiGator to the top of the provisional qualifying sheet Friday night with a 5.791 at 244.03 mph. Noakes, in his first season driving for car owner Terry McMillen, also claimed the five Last Man Standing bonus points. Jeff Dobbins (Wilmington, N.C.) cleaned up in the Pro Stock class Friday evening, claiming the provisional #1 qualifier position and winning the $500 bonus for being the Quarter-Max Pro Stock Challenge winner. The Quarter-Max Pro Stock challenge, like the IHRA Last Man Standing, rewards the driver with the quickest qualifying pass, who also won against the car in the other lane, with five bonus points. Dobbins, driving his 2006 Ford Escort, covered the quarter-mile in 6.312 at 221.78 mph to jump to the top of the qualifying sheet. Dobbins was one thousandth of a second off his own track record of 6.311 set last season. He will have to survive two more qualifying sessions Saturday to hold on to the #1 spot. The IHRA Motor City Nationals presented by GM Performance Division and Heritage Newspapers will continue Saturday, May 24 with two professional qualifying sessions. The first will begin at 2:00pm with all five professional classes running. The field will finalize after Saturday’s evening qualifying session, which will start at 6:30pm. MILAN, Mich. -- Results Friday after qualifying for the Motor City Nationals presented by GM Performance Division & Heritage Newspapers at Milan Dragway, third of 11 events in the 2008 Knoll-Gas Nitro Jam Drag Racing Series. Qualifying will continue Saturday for Sunday's final eliminations. Top Fuel -- 1. Scott Palmer, 4.597 seconds, 317.49 mph; 2. Bruce Litton, 4.620, 322.27; 3. Mike Strasburg, 4.647, 327.43; 4. Bobby Lagana Jr., 4.716, 290.13; 5. Chris Karamesines, 5.052, 289.14; 6. Todd Paton, 5.389, 181.03; 7. Dave Gallegos, 5.728, 248.66; 8. Fred Farndon, 7.832, 79.68. Not Qualified: 9. Kevin Jones, 9.482, 86.95; 10. Terry McMillen, 10.472, 85.21; 11. Spencer Massey, broke. Nitro Funny Car -- 1. Daniel Wilkerson, Chevy IMpala, 4.831, 316.01; 2. Matt Hagan, Chevy Monte Carlo, 5.049, 302.35; 3. Andy Kelley, Pontiac Firebird, 5.196, 256.02; 4. Todd Simpson, Chevy Camaro, 5.814, 256.60; 5. Rob Bruce, Camaro, 5.882, 27.19; 6. Terry Haddock, Dodge Stratus, 7.953, 110.07; 7. Dale Creasy Jr., Chevy Impala, 9.531, 59.73; 8. Cory Lee, Monte Carlo, 10.578, 84.39. Not Qualified: 9. Bob Gilbertson, 10.584, 85.46; 10. Paul Lee, 10.819, 76.94; 11. Jeff Diehl, 12.739, 35.71; 12. Jack Wyatt, 19.110, 61.92. Pro Modified -- 1. Kenny Lang, Chevy Corvette, 5.964, 239.36; 2. Tommy D'Aprile, Chevy Bel Air, 6.038, 229.70; 3. Jason Hamstra, Chevy Camaro, 6.053, 234.49; 4. Scott Cannon, Pontiac Firebird, 6.074, 238.30; 5. Mike Castellana, Firebird, 6.088, 236.05; 6. Thomas Patterson, Willys, 6.091, 222.07; 7. Mark Nielsen, Camaro, 6.095, 237.46; 8. Jason Stock, Corvette, 6.135, 229.35; 9. Jim Halsey, Camaro, 6.141, 231.16; 10. Ed Hoover, Camaro, 6.147, 235.72; 11. Mike Janis, Firebird, 6.160, 233.40; 12. Chip King, Dodge Daytona, 6.167, 236.09; 13. Billy Gibson, Plymouth Superbird, 6.196, 232.87; 14. Carl Spiering, Camaro, 6.202, 232.11; 15. Quain Stott, Corvette, 6.431, 227.31; 16. Gary Mason, Corvette, 6.656, 190.22. Not Qualified: 17. Pat Stoken, 7.628, 115.43. Alcohol Funny Car -- 1. Paul Noakes, Dodge Avenger, 5.791, 244.03; 2. Rob Atchison, Chevy Monte Carlo, 5.828, 248.93; 3. Tony Bogolo, Ford Mustang, 5.905, 238.34; 4. Mark Thomas, Chevy Impala, 5.907, 244.07; 5. Laurie Cannister, Chevy Camaro, 5.923, 240.29; 6. Terry Munroe, Monte Carlo, 5.931, 238.64; 7. Larry Dobbs, Chevy Corvette, 5.987, 232.15; 8. Thomas Carter, Monte Carlo, 6.099, 183.47. Not Qualified: 9. Dale Brand, 6.121, 184.90; 10. Dylan Hache, 6.212, 202.12; 11. Tim Stevens, 6.415, 163.10; 12. John Hart, 10.415, 78.75; 13. Rocky Hummel, 22.299, 35.54. Pro Stock -- 1. Jeff Dobbins, Ford Escort, 6.312, 221.78; 2. John Montecalvo, Chevy Cobalt, 6.320, 220.66; 3. Cary Goforth, Cobalt, 6.327, 221.20; 4. Rob Mansfield, Pontiac GTO, 6.327, 220.69; 5. Pete Berner, Pontiac GXP, 6.327, 219.86; 6. Robert Patrick, Ford Mustang, 6.343, 219.47; 7. Bob Bertsch, Mustang, 6.344, 218.65; 8. Dean Goforth, GTO, 6.346, 213.94; 9. Brian Gahm, Mustang, 6.347, 221.56; 10. Elijah Morton, Mustang, 6.352, 219.94; 11. Michael Bruno, GTO, 6.361, 220.15; 12. Richard Freeman, Cobalt, 6.383, 220.19; 13. Trevor Eman, Escort, 6.401, 220.58; 14. Jason Collins, Cobalt, 6.405, 220.51; 15. Ron Miller, Cobalt, 6.407, 217.67; 16. John Konigshofer, Mustang, 6.423, 218.34. Not Qualified: 17. Larry O'Brien, 6.447, 217.67; 18. Sylvester Barnes, 6.670, 211.46; 19. Chuck DeMory, 7.032, 147.83; 20. Frank Gugliotta, 8.594, 105.32. About IHRA Headquartered in Norwalk, Ohio, the International Hot Rod Association (IHRA), a division of Live Nation, promotes professional, semi-professional and local level racing opportunities for drivers at all levels. The $21.5 million Knoll Gas Nitro Jam™ Drag Racing Series is an 11-event North American professional drag racing circuit. In 2008, the series will be comprised of eight events in major cities throughout the United States and three in Canada. The Summit Racing Equipment Pro-Am Championship presented by Mr. Gasket consists of competition at national events and 40 events in six regional divisions, while IHRA’s Summit SuperSeries is conducted nearly every weekend at over 85 IHRA-sanctioned tracks. Providing a safe environment to develop future stars, IHRA offers the Junior Dragster Racing Series for youths ages 8-17. Stand-alone events include Live Nation’s entertainment-filled “Thunder Jam” shows and the street legal racing and lifestyle event series Street Warriorz. More information can be found at www.nitrojam.com. About Live Nation Live Nation is the world's largest live music company. Our mission is to inspire passion for live music around the world. We are the largest promoter of live concerts in the world, the second-largest entertainment venue management company and have a rapidly growing online presence. We strive to create superior experiences for artists and fans, regularly producing tours for the biggest superstars in the business, including The Rolling Stones, Barbra Streisand, Madonna, U2 and Coldplay. Globally, we own, operate, have booking rights for and/or have an equity interest in more than 160 venues, including House of Blues® music venues and prestigious locations such as The Fillmore in San Francisco, Nikon at Jones Beach in New York and London’s Wembley Arena. Our websites collectively are the second most popular entertainment/event websites in the United States, according to Nielsen//NetRatings. In addition, we also produce, promote or host theatrical, specialized motor sports and other live entertainment events. In 2006, we connected nearly 60 million fans with their favorite performers at approximately 26,000 events in 18 countries around the world. Headquartered in Los Angeles, California, Live Nation is listed on the New York Stock Exchange, trading under the symbol “LYV.” ### Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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